New Gemini update puts a handy AI image feature on your phone

A new update to Google’s Gemini AI app makes it easier for users to edit images using AI directly in the app. Gemini image editing, which can makes changes to a photo like updating a background or adding an object, was previously only available in the Google AI Studio application. Now, it works directly in the Gemini app which is available for Android and iOS devices.

In practice, that means you can take photos on your phone, upload them to the Gemini app, and make AI-enabled edits to your photos right there on your device. You can also combine image and text outputs within the app — such as generating a bedtime story which includes both text and images.

“We’re rolling out the ability to easily modify both your AI creations and images you upload from your phone or computer,” Google wrote in an announcement of the update. “You can change the background, replace objects, add elements, and more. For example, you can upload a personal photo and prompt Gemini to generate an image of what you’d look like with different hair colors.”

Google adds that any images you edit with Gemini will include an invisible watermark called SynthID. The idea is to flag images created or edited using AI with a digital indication that they have been edited. Although the images look the same to the human eye, and the watermarking doesn’t effect the quality, it means that if the image is uploaded to the internet it is flagged as AI-enhanced.

That watermarking means systems like Google Search can label the image as AI-generated or AI-edited, and the watermark remains in place even if the image is cropped or further edited.

The SynthID system is now open source and available for anyone to try, so you can also try it out to help you identify AI-generated images if you’re wondering about whether an image you’ve seen online is real or not.

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